Illinois practiced for two hours Wednesday morning at the Ubben Basketball Complex. Media was invited to watch the second hour of the practice. It was practice No. 9 out of 10 in preparation for the overseas trip to Spain.
Practice notes
From an individual player standpoint, the story of the scrimmage was TJ Shannon, Quincy Guerrier, and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn
The team did some transition work and offensive rebounding drills before around 45 minutes of half court and full court scrimmage.
Marcus Domask sat out the practice with a pulled hamstring. Underwood isn't sure how much time he’ll miss or if he'll play in Spain .
During the scrimmage, they divided up into an orange team and blue team.
Orange: Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, Justin Harmon, Terrence Shannon Jr., Luke Goode, Coleman Hawkins
Blue: Ty Rodgers, Sincere Harris, Quincy Guerrier, Dain Dainja, Amani Hansberry / Niccolli Moretti
The team is ahead of last year's squad in terms of offensive execution. Attribute that to the age and experience and of this team. Fatigue impacted the defense at times, but there weren't many defensive mistakes.
Offensively, the focus was on getting easy baskets. They took some open threes, but most of the offense came on mid-range shots and shots in the lane. This team should be more physical and more able to bully its way into the paint.
This is going to be a better offensive rebounding team. Guerrier goes to the offensive glass, Shannon played more at the 3 and got put-backs.
To me, the point guard situation isn't settled and may not be until a few games into the season.
Player notes
TJ Shannon - If Shannon continues to do the things he did today, he's going to be an All-American and first-round draft pick. He was consistently aggressive offensively and showed much more versatility as a scorer, but without forcing things. His greatest improvement was pulling up and knocking down mid-range shots. Playing the 2/3, he was active on the offensive glass. I also saw him to to his right hand and finish more often. The 3s that he took were good ones in the flow. Great practice from Shannon.
Ty Rodgers - Rodgers at point guard is a work in progress. The thing he does best is get into the lane at will, draw defenders, and kick it out. He's tough to defend because of his size and strength. That said, Rodgers struggled to finish plays around the rim, and he badly missed the only long jumper that he took. He also forced and few passes and turned it over. By playing him at the point, you also take away much of his offensive rebounding, which may be his best asset. This an experiment that is still in its early stages.
Coleman Hawkins - Hawkins is the same player that we saw last year from a skills standpoint. I did like his floor game today. He didn't play any point-forward, and instead was strictly a face-up 4/5. Same as last year, his shooting form looked good but many shots rimmed out. Hawkins was a standout defensively, both protecting the rim and on the perimeter. He had several chase-down blocks.
Sencire Harris - from a skill development standpoint, Harris is probably the most improved among the returning players. He's more confident in his shot, and has clearly improved his handles and his right hand. He's not a point guard, but he should be able to initiate the offense on occasion. His shot has improved enough that defenders can't back off of him and leave him open. Best on-the-ball defender on the team.
Luke Goode - Goode played both the 3 and 4. is in much better physical condition than when we last saw him, so his motor is better and his stop-and-go quickness has improved. He has also improved defensively. They didn't run plays for him today so we didn't see much spot-up shooting from Goode, which is what he best brings to the court. He never really got into a rhythm offensively.
Quincy Guerrier - Impressive day for the Oregon transfer. The Ducks played Guerrier out of position at the 3, and he launched too many 3's. In the Illinois system, he's a face-up 4 and that's really a great fit. A physical and mature player, Guerrier played with a great motor on both ends. He may be the most versatile scorer on the team. He handles it okay and get to the rim, makes open jumpers, and is really active on the offensive glass. Look for Guerrier to either start or come off the bench as the 6th man.
Dain Dainja - When we joined the practice, they were already over an hour into it and guys were showing fatigue. Dainja has lost a few more pounds, but his stamina still seems to be an issue. When he's tired, his shot hits the front of the iron. They want to see more decisive post moves from Dainja, and he seems to have made some strides. I thought Dainja was good on defense and on the glass. He was very good protecting the rim. He showed good footwork on offense and was able to get his shot, but had some issues finishing. More high post work for Dainja and he looked comfortable there but just didn’t make shots.
Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn - Lawhorn played exclusively at point guard and looked the part. He's very confident and a vocal leader for a freshman. He's probably the quickness player on the team with the ball in his hands. He makes shots off the bounce and finished with crafty moves at the rim. He knocks down open threes, but isn't quite as good of a shooter when closely guarded. I like the way DGL plays with his head up and makes the right pass. The issue for him will be matching the physicality and being strong with the ball against Big Ten guards. If he can do that, he'll play a lot. I think he needs to play a lot, actually.
Justin Harmon - Harmon looks like a spot player off the bench. He's strictly on the wing and didn't handle the ball much. He has a pretty good all-around skill set and can make open shots. He can get up high off of two feet, so he's good around the rim. Harmon isn't particularly quick-twitch, so I think he'll struggled some defensively against high major competition.
Amani Hansberry - Hansberry looks very much like a freshman in terms of his understanding of the game. Things are moving way too fast for him right now. He competed in the paint and is physical, but he has a long way to go before contributing. I thought from his high school / AAU film that his lack of explosiveness off the floor would be an issue, and it was today. He has trouble getting his shot off. At just 6-7, he'll need to extend his shooting range.
Niccolo Moretti - Moretti is small, slightly built, and an average athlete. If he sees the court at Illinois it will because he's crafty with the ball and can make a few open shots. He's the 12th man right now. If he adds strength over the next year or so, he could become a contributor but he's not there yet.
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